A Tale of Two Losses for Harvard in West Coast Tourney

The Harvard women’s basketball team ended the Women of Troy Basketball Classic in Los Angeles with two losses. The two losses, though, could not have been more different.

On Dec. 19, the Crimson (7-6) went down 54-49 to a Siena team that it had beaten by 23 points just three weeks earlier.

The Saints scored the last nine points of the game to take the win and ensure a miserable night for Harvard.

“We could not have played worse against Siena,” Crimson coach Kathy Delaney-Smith said. “We were sloppy on both ends of the floor. There was nothing positive about the game.”

Coming off the dismal display against the Saints, the Crimson took the court 24 hours later to face the tournament hosts—the University of Southern California—probably the toughest opponent on its schedule all season.

Despite the fact that Harvard’s upset bid ended in a 95-74 defeat, the Crimson played the Trojans nearly even in the second half and can take a lot of encouragement from the way that it competed against one of the top teams in the country.

“We responded really well against USC,” Delaney-Smith said.

Playing in her hometown, co-captain Emily Tay led her squad in scoring in both games. The senior was named to the All-Tournament Team and also moved into third place in Harvard’s all-time assists list.

SIENA 54, HARVARD 49

The Crimson may have left the Galen Center Friday night looking for answers, but the game started with plenty of promise. Harvard jumped out to a 10-2 lead, and it looked as if another big win was in store.

The Saints (2-7), however, had other ideas. Siena dominated the next 10 minutes, using a 22-7 run to take the lead.

“I think we all played individually, and Siena just played better as a team,” said Tay, who finished the game with 12 points and three steals.

The Crimson was without its other co-captain, Niki Finelli, who was sick with the flu.

“It was tough to play without her,” Delaney-Smith said. “She brings an enormous amount of energy and leadership to the floor.”

Harvard found itself up 49-45 with four and a half minutes to play. Saints’ Captain Heather Stec, who finished with a game-high 17 points, made back-to-back baskets to even the score at 49 with 2:42 remaining.

The final two minutes saw the Crimson miss four three-pointers.

“Several of our go-to players did not step up and did not want the shot,” Delaney-Smith said.

Siena was able to hit five free throws to earn the victory.

USC 95, HARVARD 74

Harvard entered Saturday’s matchup with USC (6-4) knowing that a win was unlikely but looking to make up for the disappointment of the Siena game.

“We knew we were the underdogs, but before the game there was a great energy about the team,” Tay said.

“It was completely different [from] Friday,” she added.

While the Crimson was playing its worst game of the year against Siena, the Trojans were nearly pulling out a win against No. 8 Duke. USC built a 17-point second half lead Friday night, only to be taken down in overtime by the Blue Devils.

After six and a half minutes of play, Harvard found itself up 15-14 on the Trojans.

USC responded with a 23-5 run in the middle of the first half, helping it to take a 19-point lead into the break.

“When you play against a team like USC, you have to take them away from their comfort zone and hope they miss shots,” Delaney-Smith said.

Unfortunately for the Crimson, the Trojans didn’t miss much. USC shot 57 percent from the field in the opening period, finishing the game with a season-high mark of 54 percent.

In particular, Harvard’s tough defense was unable to slow freshman All-American Briana Gilbreath, who scored 17 of her game-high 22 points in the first half.

After the break, the Trojans quickly extended their lead to 27. The Crimson, however, refused to go away.

Harvard demonstrated its resilience in a second half that saw it play mighty USC even.

On the night, the Crimson did everything right except make their shots, hitting just 37.5 percent from the field.

“I loved our patience and our balance, but some of out shots just didn’t fall,” Delaney-Smith said.

Tay and sophomore Emma Markley led the team with 16 points each, and sophomore Claire Wheeler was a force on the boards, grabbing eight rebounds. Freshman Brogan Berry was named Ivy League Rookie of the Week for the third week in a row after her solid showing in the weekend tournament.

Harvard’s performance against a national powerhouse stood in stark contrast to the previous night’s disaster.

“It says that we are young,” Tay said of the team’s inconsistency. “It’s been a rollercoaster ride so far this season.”

—Staff writer Jay M. Cohen can be reached at jaycohen@fas.harvard.edu.